FRANCE. Airport operator Aéroports de Paris (AdP) today unveiled the new building connecting terminals 2A and 2C at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. The new facility contains 2,450sq m of commercial space including the largest airport duty free store ever opened in Paris, to be operated by AdP’s joint venture with LS travel retail, Société de Distribution Aeroportuaire (SDA).
The €71 million (US$93 million) structure was inaugurated by AdP Deputy CEO François Rubichon and is the first step in a €104 million (US$136 million) renovation project for 2A and 2C.
Of the total commercial space, the walk-through duty free store on level one, Le Grand Magasin, covers 1,300sq m and is the largest retail store ever opened at a Paris airport. SDA’s BuY Paris Duty Free fascia is prominent above the entrance to the new store.
Beyond the walk-through store L’Avenue, designed to evoke the Avenue Montaigne in Paris, will feature luxury brands and gourmet restaurants. Fashion boutiques present include Bvlgari, Burberry, Gucci, Hermès, Prada, and – shortly – Dior, while a Rolex boutique is also present. Among the fine food and confectionery brands in L’Avenue are Fauchon, Ladurée, Caviar House & Prunier and Maison du Chocolat.
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In the image of the Avenue Montaigne in Paris, L’Avenue boasts a luxurious retail and F&B offer |
After checking in either at Terminal 2A or 2C, passengers are directed to the 3,400sq m passport control and security area. With 14 passport control desks and 14 security checkpoints, AdP aims to get travellers airside as quickly as possible. Passengers then advance to the retail and F&B offers on Level 1, entering the walk-through store before emerging into L’Avenue.
Before the end of the year AdP will open a McDonald’s restaurant and a microbrewery in the building.
On Level 2, airlines’ VIP customers will soon be able to access 3,300sq m of lounge space with a view over the runways.
Commenting on the new development, Rubichon said: “We wanted to make the connecting building between Terminals 2A and 2C into a premium showcase for Aéroports de Paris’ know-how, and show people what the future looks like for Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport.
“We deliberately opted for daring architecture, which now offers a brand new shopping space with leading Parisian brand names. Our ambition is to give our passengers a totally new kind of travel experience.”
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Caviar House & Prunier in L’Avenue is one of the gourmet food offers in the 2A/2C connecting building |
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The BuY Paris Duty Free store is the centrepiece of the new development’s retail offer |
Architectural approach
Aéroports de Paris has opted for “futuristic” external architecture, with a façade covered in light-reflecting bands of metal. AdP said this choice was based on a number of criteria: the material’s plasticity, flexibility and its role as both “sunscreen” and decoration.
“The AC connecting building seen from the outside looks like a huge “˜drape’, a live stage curtain capturing the quality of light and changing skies around Ile de France,” explained Aéroports de Paris Chief Architect François Tamisier.
Once inside the new building, passengers “discover a light, elegant setting” with large picture windows that let in daylight and provide a view of the planes.
AdP said particular care was taken with the interior décor, which features a “Mercury” lamp by designer Ross Lovegrove for Artemide.
Commenting on the art structure, AdP’s Senior Architect Marc Fidelle said: “[It’s] a suspended lighting installation that is at the same time majestic, subtle and poetic, and which creates an effect of surprise at the very heart of the new shopping area.”
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“Majestic, subtle and poetic”: the Mercury lamp by designer Ross Lovegrove for Artemide |
Transformation of Terminals 2A and 2C
The connecting building is the first step in a total renovation of Terminals 2A and 2C, to be completed in the second half of 2013. At the end of 2012, in Terminal 2A AdP will unveil a renovated boarding lounge and a new 1,000sq m Arrivals hall.
In the 2nd half of 2013, the revamp will conclude with the renovation of the terminals’ landside areas.
About Aéroports de Paris
Aéroports de Paris builds, develops and manages Parisian airports Charles de Gaulle, Orly and Le Bourget. In 2011, the company handled more than 88 million passengers.
In 2011, the group’s revenue stood at €2,502 million and net income at €348 million.
